Hanger



Jan. 11, 1949.

M. H. KRUGER HANGER 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 4, 1946 INVENTOR M/c/me/ He ry K/"u er ATTORNEY Jan. 11, 1949. M. H. 'KRUGER I 7 2,459,034

. HANGER v Filed Oct. 4, 1946 I 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 1,1,11,11,11. IIIIIIII! INVENTOR.

Michael hen/31 K/u er" ATTORNEY Patented Jan. 11, 1949 Applieatiemflctblier 4, 1946'; Serial -Nin 701,13?

"This. invention. relates hangers-"fforlighting fixtureseini'general and more especiallytovcad justab'le hangers.

- Among-:the objects:ofi th'er'presenti invention: it

iszaimedttozprovi'des n impr'oved adjustable hanger whicmw-ill :a'dliust itselfitowaecon'n'nodateirregu IaIitiesP a-nd' inclinations in ceilings: tfacilitate hanger stems? in particular: to extend vertically; and?thus=enable therhanger stemsoffs'everalrh'ang ers .oii a groupiforz'az particular ceiling toabe'zpa'r allelfan'dinia'linement withsone'another; not only in: the interesti ofzappearance; but also-lit the? in; terest of effectively distributing the lightloflia' groupszoff lighting fixtures; for: a :given lighting effeet or lighting?eililciency:

;Ita iststilll another object-of; sharp-resent inven tibnv. to. cprovide... an improved hanger assembly; parts cif which are convertible for weatherswith awpluralitw of hanger stems" when;- spaced from: 3211 outlet box, ior 'wit'h asstud Whenrdisposed; immediately: adjacent th'esoutlet "box.

These and otherrfeaturesgeapabilities and" advantages of the present invention W111 appear from'uthe; subjoined detail: description-r of? one: specific embodiment thereof: illustrated: in the accompanying' drawings; invwhich .:-Eig' 1 iswa'x-side: elevationnpar-tly "brokenr-away and partly in section showing: the'hanger iniposie tioni-read-y to -receive a: lighting; unit.

Fig. -a-;perspective of awplaterconstituting oneipart-lofithes hanger slightly enlangedtaspomepared: tin-Fig. 1-.

Fig. 3-isia perspective. of one of the smaller plates! constituting another? parteofi:the-rhanger slightly enlarged as: comparedtto Fig-s 2.

Fig.- 4 is-a fi -agmental"side-elevation:oft the mainplate; and. one-of thessmaller plates connected toia hangerestem:

.Ei'g 5 is-ahfragmental end elevation-oi the parts;

show-n linFi'g. 4.

vIiiig. Guise aiplanv-iew. voi? the: smalhplate shown,

flanges? Z an'dv3tin= a'ccordance'with convention to receive a'. lighting unit, suchas a fluorescent-lightin'g: w unit','. although obviously other fastening mean's'rcoul'd ibezprovided 'for the" sup-porting 'plate lofa lighting fixture: without departing fromtlie generalspirit of thevinvention'rnow to be described.

This plate: I: is. provided with a plurality of shown irrithe-"present l instance. These openings each consist2' essentia1ly of ai w-ide openingf fi' in communicationiat 'itszlateral endsw-itli the pairs ofa'narrow longitudinally extending slots- T and-'8; the slots l-loeing longer than the sIbt'S SL 'Just'beyond: the: outer" ends of each pair of" slots "I 1 and equa'1-1y'spaced?from the ends of each pair of slots Ti there is provided a 'proj'ection or pimple 9, and justibeyon'd the outer eIidsFOf eaC'h-pairw'f slots 8 and? equally spaced" from each pair of"-slots'- B;'

there isifpnovided a projection or pimple" l 0; the

, pnojeetiehsilramt lflr-being. preferably in aline= poses hereinaftertoddexlescribed: In" the present instance ,sthisaplatef I: is provi'ded with" a Lcentrally dis-posed? circularnkno'ckout' H?- andi two *substantially: rectangular'tknuckouts I'Ziand kBaeXtencling transversely; 'of :the plate" I", s-withr the circular knockout-1? l l betweerrlthe' rectangular .linockout's Hand l3.

Whemtheplatest: is: usedewith hanger stems and the? plate I iszaspaoedta substantial" distance from theiceilingethem the assemlilyshowm ini Fig- .1 may: beiusedw to advantage:. In this assembly there is shown ascanopy: Mivsecure'd t0""the1:cei'ling' ['5 Lin the-z conventional-may"- adjacentto: an outlet-box;

not-shown: nTheeicanepy M in: the "present in'- stance; isvsh'own-sase eomposedi of-t a sheet metal: stamping havingsa plane platezareai l fiisurrounded byaniexpresseditborderi [Fi beycnclwhich the sur rounding plate portion [8' continues into the bender flange" IQ'fithGfIBBTBGgBOf whichyis shown as en'gagingithemeilingr f5. Thefiange l 9rmay*be: provided with aplurality ottknockouts; suchas the kno ckoutlifzfl, one" preferably being provided in videdaso thatwiresrmay" he fed to: the: canopy HI an mitletaahoxrremotefromt the: location of the ,canepy a M; z whenzsuch'minesr mawberhousedi or enclosed in a molding attached to the ceiling in accordance with convention.

The plate portion IS, in the present instance, is provided with four openings 22, one adjacent each corner of the plate portion Hi to facilitate fastening the canopy I4 to the ceiling by means of screws or bolts when an outlet box fixture stud is not used. The plate portion I6 also is preferably provided with the centrally positioned enlarged depression 24 with an opening 25 in the center thereof. To either side of the depression 24, there is provided the enlarged opening 26 to afford access, as an instance, to the wires in the canopy I4. Furthermore, adjacent each end of the plate portion I6 there is provided the opening 21 having an inner enlarged portion 28 and an outer diminished portion 23. Extending upwardly from the enlarged opening portion 28, there is provided the flange 30, in full size approximately of an inch in altitude. Preferably in the interest of reenforcement, the plate portion I6 is also provided with transversely extending depressions, such as the two depressions 3|, one intermediate each opening 26 and its adjacent enlarged opening portion 28. The plate portion is also provided with the U-shaped depressions 32 spaced from the edges of the diminished opening portions 29 and surrounding the outer ends thereof and terminating in the trans versely extending depression portions 33. erably the plate portion I6 is also provided with two screw threaded openings 34, one disposed between each opening 26 and its adjacent depression 3| to receive screws 35 extending through openings formed in the cover plate 23. The cover plate 23 in outline conforms substantially to the plate portion I6 inside of the expressed border !'I, with the exception of the V-shaped recesses 31, one at each end of theplate 23 to clear the diminished opening portions 29 for the'purposes now to be described, when the plate 23 is secured to the canopy I4 by the screws 35.

This plate 23 is secured in position after the hanger stems 38 are secured in position. Each hanger stem 38 preferably is provided with an external thread 39 at its lower end to engage the nut 40 which is positioned on top of the plate I after being inserted in the openings 4! and 42 of the wings 43 and 44, respectively, of the small plate 45. The small plate 45, as shown in Figs.

3 and 6, preferably has a main plate portion 46 with an enlarged opening 41 in alinement with the openings 4I and 42. Preferably the plate also has laterally extending from the plate portion 46, the wings 48, 49, 50 and 51. plate 45 when intended for anchoring a hanger stem 38 to the main plate I is initially secured in place by passing the wings 43 and through the pairs of slot portions I, 8 of an opening 4 or 5. If the small plate 45 is associated with the opening 4, then, see Fig. 1. the plate portion 46 is disposed below the main plate portion I and the wings 43 and 44 extend upwardly above the main plate portion I. Thereupona nut 40, see Fig. 6, is placed in position; it being initially inserted through the lateral extensions 52' and 53 of the openings M and 42, while pressing the plate 46 up into intimate engagement with the lower face of the main plate IL After the nut 40 has been so inserted in the openings 4| and 42, the small plate 45 may then be released and it will remain anchored to the main plate 4!, and the extensions 54 of the nut 40 will then be positioned in the diminished portions 55 of the openings H and 42. Preferably the upper edges 56 of the open-' Pref- The small 4 ings 4| and 42 are convex to facilitate rocking of the nut 40 relative to the small plate 45. When the nut 43 is so positioned in the small plate 45, then the lower threaded portion 39 of the stem 38 is screw threadedly connected to the nut 40 and after the stem 38 has so been properly connected to the nut 44, then the upper head 51 of the stem 38 is initially passed through the enlarged opening 23 and then moved over into the diminished opening portion 29 where the head 5'! rests on the free edge of the diminished opening portion 29, the neck 58 formed by the depressed sides 59 and {ill of the stem 38 being narrow enough to freely slide into the diminished opening portion 29, although the head 51 above the neck 58 is wider than the width of the diminished opening portion 29. The enlarged opening portion 28, however, is wide enough to allow the head 51 to pass up through the plate portion I6 and then enable the stem 38 to be moved over into the diminished opening portion 29 where the neck 58 registers with the edges of the diminished opening portion 29. The head 57 and neck 58 may be formed in any one of several well-known ways. However, excellent results have been achieved when the head 57 relative to the neck 58 is formed by merely depressing the two opposite faces of a tubular stem 38 into the form shown in Figs. 1 and 8. After the neck 58 has been so moved over into the diminished opening portion 29, then, when the plate 23 is secured in position by the screws 35 it will anchor the stem 38 in position.

Obviously when securing a lighting fixture in place, the plate 5 has one or more stems 38 secured to the same by nuts 40 and then the necks 58 of these stems 38 subsequently connected to the plate portion I5. When two stems 38 are relied upon for supporting the plate I of the lighting fixture, then the heads 5! of the two stems 38 may be anchored to the plate portion I5 by a plate, such as the plate 23 aforesaid.

As shown in Figs. 1 and 8, there is sufficient clearance between the neck 58 and the edges of the diminished opening portion 251 to enable the stem or stems 38 to swivel or move relative to the canopy I4, not only in a lateral direction, but also in a longitudinal direction.

Furthermore, when the plates 45 are positioned with their plate portions 45 engaging the lower faces of the plates I, they, see Figs. 4 and 5, only engage the outer ends of the pimples or projections 9 and Ill. Consequently the plate I may also rock relative to the stems 38. Consequently, since the diminished opening portions 29 of a canopy I4, when two are provided, are spaced from one another a distance corresponding to the distance that the enlarged portions of the openings 4 and 5 are spaced from one another, due to the freedom of movement provided by the present invention for the stems 38, the stems 38 may always assume a vertical position, although the canopy, due to irregularities or inclinations of the ceiling may not be perfectly horizontal. Obviously, however, the plate I if properly balanced, may with facility be positioned. when desired, to be truly horizontal by merely manipulating one or the other of the nuts 40 on the threads 39 on the stems 38 until the plate I is truly horizontal.

In some instances, the small plates 45 may also be provided with pimples, such as the pimple or projection GI, extending from the inner face openings, small plates each having an. intervening web with an opening therein in registration with one of the openings in said main plate and a pair of wings extending through the narrow slots in said main plate, each pair of Wings having openings in registration with one another, and a nut screw threadedly connected to the screw threads of a stem and positioned in the openings of a pair of wings with the stem extending into the opening in an intervening web and the opening in the main plate in registration therewith, each opening in a wing including a narrow portion and a large portion, the large portion enabling the nut to be inserted into place in the openings of the wings, and the narrow portion cooperating with the nut to anchor the same against movement, the intervening web of each small plate engaging the lower face of said main plate and said narrow opening portion being disposed above the large opening portion so that the weight of the main plate when supported by said nuts will cause the nuts to be positioned in said narrow opening portions.

7. The combination of a plate of a hanger for a lighting fixture, said main plate having a plurality of openings with pairs of slots in communication with each of said openings, small plates each having an intervening Web With an opening at one end and wings extending therefrom to enter a pair of slots, said slots and wings of each small plate being positioned relative to one another to have part of said intervening web cover an adjacent opening in said main plate in one position and in another position to have the opening in said small plate to register with one of the said openings in said main plate.

8. A hanger attachment for lighting fixtures including a canopy, means for fastening the canopy to a ceiling, said canopy having one set of openings to afford access to the wiring, and a second set of openings, each opening of said second set having an enlarged portion and a smaller portion, an upwardly extending flange surrounding the enlarged portion, a tubular rod for each opening of the second set and having parallel indentations adjacent the upper end thereof, the larger portion of each of said second set of openings enabling the said tubular rods to pass therethrough from below after installation, the smaller portion of each opening of said second set of openings corresponding to the width of the tubular rods at the indentations to receive the indented portions of the rods and anchor the rods in suspended position when the rods had been moved from the larger portions to the smaller portions of the openings of the second set, and a lighting fixture unit connected to the lower ends of said tubular rods. 1

* 9. A hanger attachment for lighting "fixtures including a canopy, means for fastening the canopy to a ceiling, said canopy having one set of openings to afford access to the wiring and a second set of openings, each opening of said second set having an enlarged portion and a smaller portion, an upwardly extending flange surrounding the enlarged portion, a tubular rod for each opening of the second set and having parallel indentations adjacent the upper end thereof, the larger portion of each of said second set of openings enabling the said tubular rods to pass therethrough from below after installation, the smaller portion of each opening of said second set of openings corresponding to the width of the tubular rods at the indentations to receive the indented portions of the rods and anchor the rods in suspended position when the rods had been moved from the larger portions to the smaller portions of the openings of the second set, an anchoring plate having openings registering with said tubular rods when registering with the smaller portions of the openings of said second set to anchor said tubular rods in position relative to said can,- opy, and a lighting fixture unit connected to the lower ends of said tubular rods.

10. A hanger attachment for lighting fixtures including a canopy, means for fastening the canopy to a ceiling, said canopy having one set of openings to afford access to the wiring and a second set of openings, each opening of said second set having an enlarged portion and a smaller portion, an upwardly extending. flange surrounding the enlarged portion, a tubular rod for each open-v ing of the second set and having diminished portions spaced from their upper free ends, the larger portion of each of said second set of openings enabling the said tubular rods to pass thereth-rough from below after installation, the smaller portion of each opening ofsaid second set of openings correspondingto the width of the tubular rods attheir diminished portions to receive the di-. minished portions of the rods and anchor the rods in suspended position when the rods had been moved from the larger portions to the smaller portions of the openings of the second set, and a lighting fixture unit connected to the lower ends of said tubular rods.

MICHAEL HENRY KRUGER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent: 3

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number 

